There are around seven working weeks before most businesses close for Christmas. If you have a role that is important to your 2027 plans, the decisions you make in the next few weeks will determine when that person actually starts.
The timeline
Secure an accepted offer before the break and, with a standard one-month notice period, your new hire starts in late January and is part of the team from the first weeks of the year.
Miss that window and the picture changes, and not just by a little bit. Decision makers return mid-January. Interviews resume late in the month. Summer long weekends slow things further. The offer lands in February, allowing for a notice period, and your new hire starts in March, or later.
For senior and leadership roles, where notice periods of two to three months are common, the gap widens again. A CFO or Head of Supply Chain who is not signed before Christmas may not start until the second quarter. That is a full quarter without the capability you planned and budgeted for.
Our experience is that shortlists rarely survive the summer break
A strong candidate ready to move in December will not sit and wait over summer. Good people take other offers, accept counter-offers or reconsider their plans over the holidays. A shortlist parked in December often means starting again in January, and pushing the start date out even further.
January is crowded
Many businesses hold their hiring until the new year. That puts more organisations in the market for the same people at the same time. Businesses that move now engage candidates while competition is lower and decisions can be made with focus.
What to do now:
- Lock in your decision makers. Confirm who signs off and make sure they are available for interviews before they go on leave.
- Set a firm timeline. Work back from your last week before close-down. Shortlist, interview and offer dates should be in the calendar now.
- Move decisively. When the right person is in front of you, make the offer. Holding out for an alternative over the break rarely pays off.
- Plan the start. Agree a start date and stay in contact over the holidays so your new hire arrives engaged.
Talk to us before the break
Hunter Campbell’s specialist teams across Accounting and Finance, Supply Chain, Operations and Procurement, and Sales and Marketing are working with clients now to secure key appointments before Christmas. If you have a role that needs to be resolved this year, contact our team today.
